State Experiences Linking Medicaid Data With Birth Certificates and Other Data Sources

Abstract

Background: Many states link Medicaid claims with birth certificates or other data, often to inform programs and policies aimed at improving maternal and child health (MCH). Objectives: To develop an up-to-date understanding of the extent of the use of linked Medicaid claims for MCH research by state. Research Design: We completed a structured literature review, developed an inventory of linkage efforts, and facilitated semistructured discussions with representatives from 9 states with established Medicaid claims data linkages to understand the technical details of linkages, experiences creating and maintaining linkages, and barriers or facilitators to establishing linkages. Results: We identified 45 peer-reviewed journal articles representing 22 states that used linked Medicaid data to study MCH and 33 states and territories that publicly report on Medicaid data linkages for a total of 39 states with any in-scope linkage. Discussions revealed that linkages often arose from the desire to answer a specific question or evaluate a program but then expanded to other use cases and that most states enable external researchers to access data for analysis. Respondents provided a few examples of where linked birth certificate data were used for health outcomes research. Conclusion: Additional resources including technical assistance for identifying best practices along with interagency collaboration could overcome barriers and facilitate a coordinated and consolidated approach across states.